Percussion fuse for projectiles



May 27, 1941. P. E; J. DENOIX PERCUSSION FUSE FOR PROJECTILES Filed Dec 27, 1937 Patented May 27, 194-1 FERCUSSIUN FUSE 1 R BROJEICTILES Applicatien December 27, 1937, Serial No. 181,968 In Switzerland December 31, 1936 Claims.

This invention relates to a percussion fuse, for projectiles of all kinds, which is adapted to function irrespective of the position in which the projectile strikes its objective.

Fuses of the type in which the firing members, striker and primer, are held apart by one or more blocking elements, in frail equilibrium, and are dislodged by the shock of the impact are already known.

The present invention provides a fuse of the foregoing type, which is characterised in that, when in safety position, the blocking elements are immobilised by a bolt device and the eiiacing movement of the bolt, after the shot has been fired, is checked by a plunger, or dash-pot device.

This arrangement enables the setting of the fuse in operation to be deferred until the projectile has reached a certain point on its trajectory, thereby precluding any risk of premature percussion in the vicinity of the weapon through encountering unforeseen obstacles, such as branches of trees, camoufiaging devices, parapets and the like.

According to a further feature of the invention, the plunger device itself is blocked in the safety position by a blocking system comprising restraining members which are held in engagement by means of a ring controlled by a spring which, at the'same time, serves to actuate the plunger.

In one embodiment of the invention, the striker (or the carrier of the primer) is blocked in safety position by a device comprising a socket which is held in contact with the blocking device by a spring which serves to displace said socket in order to free the striker (or the primer carrier) after the blocking devices have been moved away.

Further features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description.

In order that the invention may be more readily understood, reference is made to the accompanying drawing which illustrates diagrammatically and by way of example one embodiment thereof, and in which:

Fig. 1 is an axial section of the fuse in neutral position; and

Figs. 2, 3 and 4 are similar views showing, respectively, the positions assumed by the parts, on firing the shot, after the setting of the fuse, and on impact.

In the embodiment shown, the fuse comprises a body I, in the bore la, of which is mounted tive position.

a percussion device comprising a striker 3, which is impelled, in the direction of a primer 4, by a spring 5 which bears against the bottom 6 of a socket l and is blocked in safety or operative position by balls 8, or equivalent blocking devices, which are themselves held in engagement, over at least one half of their perimeter, with a recess in the striker 3, by a socket 9 which a spring in tends to force out of the blocking or opera- The action of this spring I0 is neutralised by one or more balls II, or equivalent blocking elements, interposed between a projection 12 from the socket 9, and a corre sponding projection l3 on the head I l of a plug !5 firmly mounted on the fuse body I.

The balls i i are retained in the operative position shown in Fig. l by a bolt device comprising a double sleeve l5, which surrounds them and is adapted to slide, under slight friction, in a bore la of the body I. Said sleeve is restrained by balls H, or equivalent means, which engage simultaneously with the balls II and with perforations l8 in the sleeve 16. These perforations i8 preferably slope downwards, so as to allow the balls ll to pass away from the perforations when the shot is fired. In neutral positions, the balls IT (or other locking means) are held in operative position by means of a ring I9, pressed by a spring 20 and comprising, near its front end 2!, a flange 22 serving to guide it in the sleeve It.

The surfaces l2 and I3 on which the balls II are supported by the members 9 and I4 respectively, preferably conform with the shape of said balls. By suitably adjusting their extent, the sensitiveness of the fuse is regulated at the same time.

In a modification, the spring in and the bottom 6 of the sockets l are omitted and the percussion spring 5 is employed to impel the member 9 forwards at the moment of impact. It is, however, preferable to provide two independent springs 5 and ID in order to be able to adjust the force of each, to the individual task it has to perform.

The fuse functions in the following manner:

On the firing of the shot, the members pass, by inertia, into the position shown in Fig. 2. The ring [9 lags behind, compressing the spring 20 and releasing the balls H, which escape and fall on to the flange 22 of the ring l9.

After positive acceleration has ceased, the spring 20 repels the ring l9 and balls I l forwards, these latter being prevented from re-entering their seatings by the extremity 2| projecting beyond the flange 22 of the ring l9. When the balls l1 encounter the bottom of the double sleeve I6, the spring 20 tends to move this latter forward. This movement, however, is checked by the resistance offered by the air, or other fluid, contained in the space 23 and which can only gradually escape through the very small clearance between the outer walls of the double sleeve l6 and the bore la, the mode of operation being analogous to that of a plunger or dash-pot. When the movement of the sleeve I6 is completed (which takes a certain time, regulated by the construction of the device so as to ensure safety during the desired trajectory) the fuse is set as shown in Fig. 3.

The shock of the impact causes the balls II, which are in a state of frail immobility, to be dislodged laterally, and the spring I forces the socket 9 forward, releasing the balls 8 which the striker, impelled by spring 5, expels laterally and thus strikes the primer 4.

The percussion takes place irrespective of the direction in which the shock of the impact is exerted, unless this does coincide with the axis of the fuse. In such case, the secondary vibrations set up at the moment of impact will be sufiicient, in practice, to produce the lateral dislodgment of the unstable balls I I in frail equilibrium.

The position of the two firing members, striker and primer (which latter should then be mounted in a carrier) may be reversed, Without in any way affecting the foregoing method of operation.

It should be understood that the invention has been described and illustrated solely by way of example, and that various modifications can be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A percussion fuse for priming projectiles regardless of the direction of impact, comprising only two firing members, a percussion spring for urging one of said firing members toward the other, means for holding said firing members apart up to the moment of impact and including at least one blocking element disposed in frail equilibrium whereby impact by shocks in any one of a multiplicity of directions will dislodge the said blocking element, a sleeve engageable with said blocking element for maintaining the blocking element in a position holding said firing members apart, means for maintaining said sleeve in engagement with said blocking element and including shiftable means for releasing said sleeve and for moving said sleeve away from engagement with said blocking element after firing of the shot, and pneumatic means operable upon movement of the sleeve away from the blocking element to delay movement of the said sleeve whereby to prevent premature ignition of the fuse.

2. A percussion fuse for priming projectiles regardless of the direction of impact, comprising only two firing members, a percussion spring for urging one of said firing members toward the other, means for holding said firing members apart up to the moment of impact and including at least one blocking element disposed in frail equilibrium whereby impact by shocks in any one of a multiplicity of directions will dislodge the said blocking element, a sleeve engageable with said blocking element for maintaining the blocking element in a position holding said firing members apart, retaining members for holding said sleeve in engagement with said blocking element, a ring member engageable with said retaining members for holding the said retaining members in engagement with said sleeve, a spring for holding said ring member in engagement with said retaining members and compressible after firin of the shot to release said retaining members and to move said sleeve away from engagement with said blocking element, and pneumatic means operable upon movement of the sleeve away from the blocking element to delay movement of the said sleeve whereby to prevent premature ignition of the fuse.

3. A percussion fuse for priming projectiles regardless of the direction of impact, comprising only two firing members, a percussion spring for urging one of said firing members toward the other, means for holding said firing members apart up to the moment of impact and including at least one blocking element disposed in frail equilibrium whereby impact by shocks in any one of a multiplicity of directions will dislodge the said blocking element, a sleeve engageable with said blocking element for maintaining the blocking element in a position holding said firing members apart, retaining members engageable with said sleeve and with said blocking element for holding said sleeve in engagement with the said blocking element, a ring member engageable with said retaining members for holding the said retaining members in engagement with said sleeve and with said blocking element, a spring for holdin said ring member in engagement with said retaining members and compressible after firing of the shot to release said retaining members and to move said sleeve away from engagement with said blocking element, and pneumatic means operable upon movement of the sleeve away from the blocking element to delay movement of the said sleeve whereby to prevent premature ignition of the fuse.

4. A percussion fuse for priming projectiles regardless of the direction of impact, comprising only two firing members, a percussion spring for urging one of said firing members toward the other, locking means for holding said firing members apart and including latching members engaging one of said firing members, a socket member engaging said latching members to maintain the said latching members in engagement with said firing member, means for holding said socket member in engagement with said latching members and including at least one blocking element disposed in frail equilibrium whereby impact by shocks in any one of a multiplicity of directions will dislodge the said blocking element and release said socket member, a sleeve engageable with said blocking element for maintaining the blocking element in a position holding said socket member in engagement with said latching members, means for maintaining said sleeve in engagement with said blocking element and including shiftable means for releasing said sleeve and for moving said sleeve away from engagement with said blocking element,

after firing of the shot, said percussion spring serving to release said latching members from engagement with one of the firing members when moved toward the other firing member, and

pneumatic means operable upon movement of the said sleeve whereby to prevent premature ignition of the fuse.

5. A percussion fuse for priming projectiles regardless of the direction of impact, comprising only two firing members, a percussion spring for urging one of said firing members toward the other, locking means for holding said firing members apart and including latching members engaging one of said firing members, a socket member engaging said latching members to maintain the said latching members in engagement with said firing member, means for holding said socket member in engagement with said latching members and including at least one blocking element disposed in frail equilibrium whereby impact by shocks in any one of a multiplicity of directions will dislodge the said blocking element and release said socket member, a sleeve engageable with said blocking element for maintaining the blocking element in a position holding said socket member in engagement with said latching members and releasable after firing of the shot, means for moving said sleeve away from said blocking element after firing of the shot, pneumatic means operable upon movement of the sleeve away from the blocking element to delay movement of the said sleeve whereby to prevent premature ignition of the fuse, and a second spring operable upon dislodging of the blocking element to move said socket member to a position releasing said latching members whereby to unlock the firing member and permit the percussion spring to force the same into engagement with the other firing member.

PAUL EMILE JOSEPH DENOIX. 

